


Of Course It Was You

by tasharocks101



Category: Legacies (TV 2018)
Genre: F/F, Mentions of MG, Mentions of hope
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-07
Updated: 2019-09-07
Packaged: 2020-10-11 12:20:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,700
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20546063
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tasharocks101/pseuds/tasharocks101
Summary: MG decides set up Josie on a blind date. The date ends up being the cute barista that she had been crushing on for longer than she wants to admit. In the end, Josie really owed a thank you to MG.





	Of Course It Was You

“I really need to thank MG.”

Josie froze for a second, recognizing the voice, but not believing what she was hearing. She slowly turned around, coming face-to-face with the biggest crush she has ever had. In front of her stood Penelope, the dark-haired barista from the coffee shop downtown. She was wearing a thin jacket over a black blouse that perfectly complimented the deep blue skinny jeans she had on. God, she’s hot.

Josie shook her head, trying to hide the blush that was playing across her cheeks at the thought. She moved to stand up, to greet the other girl, but Penelope just waved her off. Penelope took the seat across from her and as she settled in, Josie realized she hadn’t said a word. “You, uh, you look nice.”

“So do you.” Penelope smirked as Josie failed to hide the blush this time. Josie was in a simple sundress with a cardigan. Nothing fancy. Afterall, they were at a small café, not far from her place. Plus, this was only supposed to be a blind date with a random stranger. Not Penelope. “You weren’t waiting long, I hope.”

“No. No. Uh, haven’t even ordered yet.” Penelope nodded at Josie’s answer, turning to wave done a waitress. She found one quickly and they placed their order. After that, silence settled over the two. It wasn’t uncomfortable, at least not yet. Josie tried to come up with a topic, but she wasn’t good with small talk when she was nervous. And Penelope made her nervous. It was one thing to flirt a bit at the coffee shop, it was another to be sitting across from her on a date.

In the end, Josie settled on a simple question. “Why do you have to thank MG?”

Penelope just smirked. “Because he set me up with you.” She stated it so simply like it was fact. “You know, when he finally guilted me into this stupid blind date, I was convinced I would hate it. I mean, blind dates just suck, and I couldn’t imagine what lame friend MG thought I would like. I didn’t expect you. But, of course, it was you.”

Josie couldn’t meet her eyes. “You don’t think I’m the lame friend? I guess you never heard me rant about my intro to philosophy class.”

“I guarantee I would love every second of that rant.”

“You don’t know that.” Josie doubted. “You don’t even know me.”

Penelope turned her head a bit, studying the other girl. “Isn’t that the point of a date?” 

“I guess.” Josie finally looked the darker-haired girl. The way she was looking at Josie caught her off guard. There was a bit of affection there and Josie couldn’t understand why. But, whatever the reason, it made her more confident. At least, confident enough to admit what she was about to admit. “Anyway, I have to thank MG, too. He was able to ask you out on my behalf. I’ve been trying to do it for a couple of weeks.”

The look of surprise on Penelope’s face was amazing. “You what?”

“Did you think I flirted with just anyone?” Josie leaned against the table, closer to the other girl, a flirty smile playing on her lips.

Penelope recovered from her initial shock. She let out a laugh as she leaned a bit. “You’re something else. I think we are going to have a lot of fun tonight.”

Time flew by after that. Their food came and went as they talked. And they talked about everything. They talked about how MG and Penelope became friends through working at the coffeeshop. Josie talked about being a twin and her best friend, Hope. Penelope complained about her chemistry class (not without making a few jokes) and gushed about her English ones. Josie found out Penelope wanted to be a writer while Penelope found out that the other girl wanted to be a teacher. 

Josie did end up ranting about philosophy, and Penelope loved every second of it.

Josie couldn’t imagine it going any better. Penelope was everything she imagined. Yes, she was the exact same flirty barista that Josie saw a few times a week. But, she was also smart and funny and passionate. She treated every word that Josie spoke as if it was the most important thing in the world. She made Josie feel like no one else ever did. Josie knew that it was only one date, but she could tell she was falling hard for the other girl.

They stayed at the café until closing, being the last ones out. They kept up the conversation as Penelope walked Josie to her car. “No, I swear. My moms really did it. I never did live it down. It’s known as “The Great Glitter War” to this day.”

“I still don’t believe you, but I guess I’m gonna have to take your word for it.” Josie replied as they reached her car. The pair got quiet as it was clear that neither one was ready for the date to be over. “Thank you for tonight, Penelope. I had a great time.”

“I’m pretty sure we agreed we would be thanking MG for this, JoJo. But, your welcome. Next time we’ll have to try that Italian place a couple blocks over.”

Josie couldn’t help the nervous smile she got. If you asked her why, she couldn’t pinpoint the exact reason. Maybe it was the nickname. Maybe it was the flirty smirk that she has already associated with Penelope. Maybe it was the other girl asking her out on a second date before the first was officially over. Or maybe it was the fact that as the raven-haired girl took a few steps towards her, shortening the distance between them by a fair amount. Maybe it was all of it. 

“Yeah, definitely.” Josie leaned against the car door. “Though, I think I will need to get your number to plan that.”

“Wow, smooth, JoJo. That was impressive, even for me. Give me your phone.”

“I think you bring it out of me. I am never smooth. And I can’t claim to not be nervous right now.” Josie admitted as Penelope saved her number to her phone.

“I make you nervous?” Penelope questioned, handing the phone back. When Josie just shrugged, blushing more than she had all night, Penelope closed the distance between them. The kiss was softer and sweeter than Josie expected. She couldn’t tell you what she expected, but it wasn’t Penelope bringing a hand to her cheek to hold it. Josie didn’t care what she expected; She was loving every second of it. She brought her hands up around Penelope’s neck and pulled her closer.

Penelope pulled back, too soon for Josie’s liking. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to do that. You just look really adorable when you blush, and you were being cute, and I couldn’t help myself.”

Josie smiled down softly at the shorter girl. “You are something else, you know that? No one has ever apologized for kissing me before. And, honestly, there have been some pretty terrible ones that deserve to be apologized for. This is not one of them.”

“Well, then I take it back.” Penelope replied with a smirk.

“Good.”

“Good.” They stood there a second, their breaths mixing together in the night air. Penelope’s eyes bounced between Josie’s lips and eyes a few moments before kissing the taller girl again. They stayed that way for a while, but neither girl seemed to care. They were both happy exactly where they were.  
\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Penelope woke up to the sound of rain outside her window. She contemplated going back to sleep, but she had class that morning that she couldn’t miss. She went to get up when she felt an arm tighten around her waist. She smiled to herself as she remembered the girl in the bed with her.

It wasn’t just any girl. It was her girlfriend of three months. Her wonderful, beautiful, amazingly sweet girlfriend that she still can’t believe she gets to call her own. It was the girl that would send her memes and long stream of emojis just because she could. It was the girl that would make her breakfast because she knows she wouldn’t do it herself. It was the girl that she was helplessly in love with but was terrified to say the words out loud. Yep, it wasn’t just any girl.

Penelope carefully turned in Josie’s embrace trying not to wake her. She settled with her face centimeters away from Josie’s face. She got a soft smile as she studied her girlfriend. Mornings where she woke up first were some of her favorite’s. Josie never looked more at piece than when she was asleep, wearing one of Penelope’s oversized band tees. It was like the weight of the world would leave her shoulders and Penelope would pay any price to make that last longer. Penelope would pay any price for Josie’s happiness.

“Pen?” Josie mumbled.

“Yeah, JoJo?”

“You’re staring. I’m trying to sleep.”

Penelope let out a laugh, louder than she intended. “Hey, I tried to get up, but someone wouldn’t let me.” With her eyes still closed, Josie grumbled something ineligible while tightening her grip even more, pulling Penelope even closer. “See, babe, you can’t get enough of me.”

“Of course. I love you.”

Everything froze for a moment as the words settled over the couple. Penelope was sure she misheard what was said. Because there was no way that the girl of her dreams loved her back. She didn’t deserve it.

Josie’s eyes flew open as if she just realized what she had said. She sat up and put a little bit of distance between them. Penelope’s heart dropped at the look of panic on her face. It was clear she did not mean to say it. When Penelope reached out to take her hand and Josie flinched at the movement, her heart practically broke.

“Hey, it’s okay.” Penelope said while sitting up and leaning against her headboard. “It slipped out. You can take it back. It doesn’t have to mean anything.” Each word hurt her to say, but this wasn’t about her. This was about Josie. It didn’t matter if all she wanted to do was say it back. It clearly wasn’t the right time for that.

Josie stared at Penelope for what was probably a minute or two but felt like an eternity to the hazel-eyed girl. The panic had seemed to subside but was replaced by something that she could not discern. “Do you want it to mean something?”

“What?” Penelope was sure the surprise was clear in her voice.

“What I said. Do you want it to mean something?” It was asked softly, as if Josie was still unsure if the words should leave her mouth. As if she was going to try and unsay them at any moment.

Penelope wasn’t sure how to answer her. She couldn’t lie and say she didn’t. That would kill her and possibly Josie as well. However, the truth felt too vulnerable. Too raw. So, she did the thing that she was good at when it came to her emotions. She deflected. “Do you?”

Josie let out an exasperate sigh. “Come on, Pen. Don’t do that. Just answer the question. It’s not hard.”

“Easy for you to say. You’re not the one whose girlfriend freaked out after saying I love you for the first time.”

“I didn’t freak out. I, I just didn’t mean to say it.”

“See, there’s your answer. You didn’t mean it.” Penelope got up, ready to move on from the conversation. “I’m gonna take a shower.”

“Penelope, hold up a second.” She stopped, but didn’t turn around, not ready to face her girlfriend yet. She wasn’t sure she could survive whatever look Josie was giving her. “I didn’t mean to say it. But, I meant it.” She couldn’t help the sense of hope and happiness that bubbled up inside her at the words. She still didn’t fully believe what she heard though.

She didn’t believe it until she felt a pull on her wrist, turning her around. Josie stood in front of her, brown eyes softer than she has ever seen them. She felt the other girl’s hands on her cheeks, felt herself leaning into those hands. “I love you, Penelope Park.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah.” Josie said with such conviction that Penelope was forced to believe her. She just had no choice.

“God, I love you, too. I love you so much.” And then they were kissing. It was passionate and hot, both girls clearly trying to convey how much they felt into it. Josie deepened the kiss and Penelope was happy to go along with it. She was happy, period. The person that she loved most in the world loved her back. Yeah, their relationship wasn’t perfect, but this moment, it was everything.

Penelope only broke the kiss when she realized that Josie was pulling them back towards the bed. “As much as I would love to continue this, I do need to take a shower. I have class in like an hour.” She smirked at the look of disappointment on the taller girl’s face. “Don’t worry. We will continue this later. I promise.”

Josie pulled her into another kiss by her shirt. It was chaste and sweet, but just as passionate. “I can’t wait.” Another kiss. “I can’t wait to show you how much I love you.” A third kiss made Penelope reconsider leaving the room. 

When Josie connected their foreheads, Penelope let out a soft sigh. “You know, only we can get into a fight because someone declared their love.” She laughed as she was playfully shoved towards the bathroom.

“Go take your shower and leave me alone.”

“You love me.”

“Yeah, I really do.”  
\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

This was not how you were supposed to meet your girlfriend’s parents. You were supposed to meet them during an awkward dinner, answering questions about intentions and surviving jokes at your expense. You were not supposed to meet them while answering the door in boyfriend shorts and a tee shirt that was not yours. However, for Josie, that was exactly how she met Penelope’s moms.

It started when knocking woke the girls up. Penelope pulled the sheets tighter around them and mumbled that whoever it was would go away. She was wrong, and the knocking kept up. Josie, after trying and failing to get her girlfriend out of bed, threw on the closest pieces of clothing and wondered towards the door. When she opened the door, she was greeted by, not Hope or Jed or Kaleb, but two women that she has only seen photos. “Oh, hi.”

“Hi. Is Penelope here or did we get the wrong apartment?” The taller one, Kimberley she remembered Pen telling her, asked. The shorter Latina, Trini, was just looking Josie up and down, clearly judging her. She was carrying something, but Josie couldn’t tell you what.

Josie self-consciously crossed her arms across her chest as she stepped back to let them in. “You got the right place. Let me, uh, go get her.” Josie retreated back to the bedroom as quickly as she could without running. Penelope was still in bed, half asleep when she entered the room. “Pen, your moms are here.” Josie harshly whispered as she tried to find her clothes.

This got Penelope’s attention, forcing her to sit up. “What do you mean my moms are here?” she asked with slight panic in her voice. 

“I mean,” Josie paused as she pulled off her shirt to put on her bra she just found, “your two mothers, one of which did not look very happy seeing me, are standing in your living room.” She hastily pulled on her blouse, trying to smooth out the wrinkles. “I thought we were supposed to have dinner with them, not breakfast.”

Penelope was up and getting dressed at this point. She had an easier time than Josie, considering this was her apartment. “We were. I guess they decided to pay me a visit.” Penelope finished up and looked at her girlfriend. Josie looked freaked out and did not look ready to meet the parents. “Hey, babe, it’s okay. They are going to love you.”

Josie did not look convinced as she finished putting on her jeans. Penelope knew that making a good first impression was important for Josie. That’s why she wanted to do dinner in the first place. It was something that she could control. But, Penelope knew that her moms wouldn’t care. Yeah, they could be protective and overbearing at times, but they just wanted her to be happy. And Josie made her so happy.

“JoJo, they are going to love you. I know I do.” Josie relaxed a bit after hearing that. “I’m gonna go entertain them. Take you time, okay? There is no rush. If you want to hide back here the whole time, please do. I’ll sneak you out later.” Penelope place a soft kiss of Josie lips before heading to face her mothers.

“I thought we were meeting for dinner? What do I owe the pleasure?” Penelope asked as she entered the living room. She only found her mom, Kim, on the couch. “Wait, where’s mami?”

“She went to find the kitchen. She had some food for you. Don’t ask me why she made us stop at the closest store. I don’t get it either.” Her mom got up and gave her a hug. As the hug ended, Kim gave her daughter a look. “Who was the pretty girl that we just met?”

“It better be the girlfriend you haven’t stopped talking about.” Trini added as she entered the room, giving her daughter a glare that said the answer had better been yes.

Penelope gave an offended scoff. “Of course, it is. Who do you think you raised?” Penelope wandered over to her mami to give her a hug. “Besides, from what I heard you didn’t meet her. You scared her.”

“I didn’t do anything.” Kim said, sending her wife a look.

“Don’t look at me like that. I just didn’t expect to be greeted by a semi dressed twenty-year-old.”

“Twenty-one. And she was more than semi dressed. That was a perfectly good tee.” Penelope defended. She watched as her mothers settled on the couch. “And that is still not a reason to be jerks.”

“Once again, I did nothing.” Kim flinched as she was smacked in the shoulder. Penelope smiled; She always loved watching them interact. It always seemed so easy for them. She always wanted a relationship like that. She thinks she finally had. “Is she ever coming out of the bedroom, by the way? I don’t think your mami is that scary.”

Penelope glanced towards the bedroom door, starting to wonder the same thing. “Don’t know. Might have climbed out the fire escape.” She ran her hand through her hair, nervously. Maybe Josie decided hiding was the best option. “Look, can you guys just go easy on her? She’s really nervous. She just wants this to go well.”

“Hiding from us is not helping with that.” Trini stated. 

“I know, mami. Just-” She stopped mid-sentence as her girlfriend decided to make an entrance. Josie was dressed as she was the night before, she had clearly taken the time to look put together. She lingered by the entrance a moment, before moving to stand next to Penelope, who quickly put her arm around her. “Looks like someone decided to join us.”

Josie blushed a bit at the comment. “Sorry. My sister called. You know how she is.” She turned to full face Kim and Trini, completely oblivious to the look Penelope got. “I’m Josie, by the way.”

“Kimberly and this is my wife, Trini.” Trini gave a small wave when she was mentioned. “It’s good to officially meet you.” Kim turned to her wife. She quirked her eyebrows a bit at her. Trini rolled her eyes, before smiling at Josie.

“Sorry about earlier if I gave you a bad impression. It was a long trip, but that’s no excuse. I am happy to meet the girl that Penny has been gushing about.”

Both younger girls got flustered at that, though Josie couldn’t help the look of love she gave Penelope. It warmed her heart to know that she was something that Pen talked to her moms about. She loved knowing that she wasn’t some secret. I mean, she knew she wasn’t a secret. Penelope has literally screamed it from the rooftops when they became official. But, it was different when hearing it from Penelope’s parents. It felt more serious; More important.

Josie liked the feeling.

“It’s okay. I wasn’t exactly the most welcoming. I did run away before introducing myself.” With that, the worst of the tension was broken. The four women chat a bit before Josie had to go. “I would love to stay longer, but my sister needs my help with something. Are we still on for dinner?”

“Yes, of course. We’ll continue this later.” Kim got up and gave Josie a hug, Josie only hesitating a second before returning it. Trini wasn’t so forward, but she did give her a warm smile before Penelope walked her out.

“You okay?” Penelope asked when they were out of earshot.

“Yeah. Still nervous, but they seem nice. And you mom gives nice hugs.”

“Yours are better.” Penelope lived for the grin that Josie got at the stupid compliment. “Go take care of Lizzie. I’ll pick you up at 7.” They shared a quick kiss before they went their separate ways and Penelope rejoined her parents.

“So, Penny, how often does that girl answer your door semi dressed?” Kim asked causally

“Mom!

Dinner went better than expected. As Penelope predicted, her moms loved Josie. They loved how passionate she was about school. The way she answered all their extremely personal questions, blushing and stammering each time. The way she talked about Penelope. They loved that they would catch her staring lovingly at their daughter.

Plus, Kim loved the dad jokes that Josie was so fond of. It was Trini’s nightmare.

“You still don’t believe me? How?” Penelope asked as she unlocked the door to her apartment.

“I think it is a family conspiracy and you all are in on it. There is no way a thing called “The Great Glitter War” ever actually happened.” Josie plopped down on the couch.

“Babe, it happened. Get over it and just accept it.”

“Never.” Josie laughed when she caught Penelope sticking her tongue out at her. She shook her head and signaled for her girlfriend to join her. She couldn’t help the soft smile she got while watching the raven-haired girl lay down with her head in her lap. “Hi.”

“Hi.” Penelope started playing with Josie’s long curls. They sat there, content with each other, before Penelope broke the silence. “They loved you, you know?”

“You sure? I mean, I like them, and I want them to like me. I’ve never met the parents of a serious girlfriend before.” Josie ran her hand down the arm not playing with her hair, lacing their fingers together when she reached her hand. A thought crossed her mind. “How do you even know? You haven’t been alone with them all night?”

Penelope scoffed, and a smirk appeared on her face. “I know my moms. I know when they like someone and when they don’t, especially when it comes to my love life. Neither are very subtle. They don’t have to tell me. Believe me when I say that they loved you.”

“If you say so.”

“Josie, I say so.” Penelope sat up, leveling her gaze with the brunette. “It went well. They loved you.” She gave a Josie a chaste kiss. “I love you.”

“I love you, too.” Josie replied on instinct. She closed the distance between them on instinct. Because when it comes to Penelope, it was always on instinct. It was as if Josie was drawn to the girl. As if she could not help herself when it came to the girl. She had felt it from the first time she set foot in the coffeeshop and laid eyes on the girl.

And it wasn’t just because Penelope was gorgeous. She was. And her kisses were addictive. And the noises she made during sex turned Josie on more than anything else. And the way she looked the next morning with bedhead-the point was that Josie found her extremely attractive. But that was not the reason why.

No. It was the way that Penelope would look at her when she thought no one would notice. It was the way that she could make Josie laugh as if on command, no matter how upset Josie was. It was the way that she made Josie feel like she could do anything. It was the sense of calmness and contentment and happiness that Josie got from just a simple touch of an arm. It was everything that Penelope was.

Penelope broke away to breathe and Josie took the opportunity to start kissing her neck. Penelope always had a sensitive neck. Josie loved taking advantage of that fact. The moan that escaped from the other girl was all the encouragement that she needed to keep going. However, when she went to straddle Penelope, she felt hands pushing away. “JoJo, hold up a sec.”

Josie frowned. “You okay?”

“Yeah. Yeah. I, I just had something I wanted to do. And if we kept going-well, you can be really distracting.”

Josie couldn’t help the small laugh that escaped her. “Okay. I’m going to take that as a compliment.”

“You should.” Penelope tucked a loose strand of hair behind Josie’s ear. She interlocked their hands. Josie could tell she was nervous by the way she was running her thumb along the back of her hand. “So, you have been spending a lot of time in this apartment lately.”

“Is this your way of claiming I’m clingy?” 

“No. I was just stating a fact. Another fact is that your drawer is overflowing with stuff and, honestly, you aren’t even using just that drawer anymore.”

“Okay,” Josie could not see where Penelope was going with any of this. “I can take some of it home. Sorry if it got a bit out of hand.”

“That’s not what I meant.” Penelope ran her hand through her hair. “I meant, if you wanted, you could have more space. And bring more of your stuff over. I mean, all of it.”

It finally clicked what was going on. What Penelope was asking in her roundabout way. “Are you asking me to move in?”

“In a lot more words, but yeah.” Penelope stares at her nervously. “So, what do you say?”

“Yes, Pen.” Josie closed the distance between the two, kissing her girlfriend hard. She pulled back a moment later. Not far, just far enough to whisper against Penelope’s lips. “The answer is always yes when it comes to you.”  
\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Penelope screwed up. She really screwed up. She knows she did. It’s why she is standing outside her girlfriend’s sister’s apartment at 2 am on a random Tuesday. The problem was that she wasn’t even sure if she should be there.

Josie wanted space. Penelope wanted to give it to her. She really did. But she hasn’t been able to sleep much over the last week. And she had a few drinks and she wasn’t exactly sober. And she just really needed to see her girlfriend. But, she couldn’t bring herself to knock. She’s been trying to talk herself into it for around ten minutes. It’d probably would have been another ten if she wasn’t interrupted.

“What are you doing here?” someone sneered behind her. When she turned towards the voice, she came face to face with the person she least wanted to see: Lizzie Saltzman.

Penelope bites her tongue, stopping a comment that surely would have started a fight. She wasn’t in the mood. Instead, she decides to head home. She wasn’t going to knock now anyway. As she was walking by Lizzie, the blonde grabs her arm.

“What, no snarky comeback tonight?”

“Technically, it’s morning.” Penelope replied, shaking free her arm. She didn’t wait for Lizzie to talk again, and just continued down the hall.

“She’s not even here, you know?”

That got her to stop in her tracks. “What?”

“We were out with Hope and MG. They thought it would cheer Josie up because she has been a mess since whatever happened between you two.” Penelope’s heart hurt at hearing that. She hurt Josie. That was something she promised herself she would never do. “It didn’t work. She bailed like an hour in. She hasn’t answered any of us since.”

“So, your sister took off, upset, and you haven’t heard from her and you aren’t even a little bit worried?” Penelope was trying to keep her anger in check; The alcohol in her system not helping. Lizzie didn’t seem to care that Josie could be in trouble or lost or hurt or whatever terrible thing might have happened. This was Penelope’s biggest issue with the girl. She was selfish and self-centered and self-involved. Josie would drop everything for Lizzie. Penelope was not convinced that Lizzie would do the same.

“Of course, I’m worried. The thing is, I figured out where she was. Because we both know there is only one place she goes when she is really, truly upset. And I’m not the one she would want to find her.” Lizzie ran her hand through her hair before locking eyes with Penelope again. “So, go find her.”

Penelope studied the other girl for a moment. Lizzie had never been fully okay with Josie’s and her relationship, always seemingly waiting for Josie to “come to her senses”. Yeah, their bitchy banter went a little far. But other than recent events, Penelope had never given the blonde a reason to doubt what she felt for Josie. Not once over the last nineteen months. Either way, it didn’t matter the reasons why, Lizzie wasn’t fond of Penelope. “Why do you care?”

Lizzie softened a bit. “Because whether I like it or not, she loves you. She needs you. She wants you. You make her happy. Well, you did. And that’s all I ever want for her.” The two girls stay there standing, letting the silence hang over them. Lizzie scoffs after a moment. “Aren’t you going to get your girl?”

“Yeah, right. I’m going.” Penelope turns on her heels and leaves. She quickly shouted a thank you behind her. She really would have to talk to Lizzie about all of this later, give her an actual thank you. Right before she got out of earshot, she heard Lizzie make a threat about hurting her sister. 

This time Penelope fully agreed.

“Isn’t it a little late to be visiting the park?” Josie jumped when she heard the question. She was so far inside her own head, she didn’t even realize she was not alone. She was sitting at her favorite bench, the one underneath the gazebo. The fairy lights providing soft light that could have been considered romantic if Josie was there under different circumstances.

“What are you doing here?”

“Looking for you.” Penelope sat down, leaving space between them. Josie’s heart hurt a bit, wondering how they got to the point where there needed to be space. Yeah, she knew why there was this time, but that didn’t mean it didn’t hurt. “I’m sorry.”

“You’ve said that already. A lot. Doesn’t change what happened.” Josie hasn’t looked at her for the entire conversation. She doesn’t think she could stay angry if she did.

“I know.”

“Then why say it?”

“Because I don’t know what else to do. You won’t answer my texts or calls. You won’t talk to me. I haven’t seen you in a week. I don’t know what to do.” Penelope shifted a closer but stopped when Josie tensed up. “I am so sorry. I would do anything to make it up to you. Just tell me what to do.”

The thing was Josie didn’t know what to tell her. It wasn’t just what happened. It was the things that came before it. It was the fights and feeling like she wasn’t being heard. Feeling like she was back in high school and not speaking up about the stuff she wanted. Penelope never made her like that until recently. And that hurt.

It hurt more than watching another woman kiss her girlfriend.

“I don’t think you can do anything. I mean, you didn’t even push Heather away.”

“Yes. Yes, I did. Maybe not immediately; I was kind of in shock. But, I did. I never kissed her back.”

Josie clenched her jaw. This was going to end the same way it did the night of the party. Penelope defending herself, not understanding that it wasn’t just the kiss. “How could you be shocked that she would kiss you? The two of you have been flirting for the last three months. And I told you the second I saw her at that frat party what would happen.”

Penelope ran her hand through her hair. “The flirting meant nothing. People flirt with me all the time. And, yeah, I flirted back sometimes. But, it was never on purpose and just out of habit. A terrible habit. I really need to work on that. I promise I will work on it.”

“You think?” Josie scoffed as she finally looked Penelope’s way. She took in the bags under her eyes, the slight disheveled look of her clothes. She could tell the Penelope was exhausted. She softened at the sight, then she scolded herself for doing so. She’s allowed to be upset right now. “We fought about her, Pen. I told you it wasn’t innocent. I know you had to work with her for your final project, but you could have set boundaries or something.”

“Your right. I, I should have listened. I wrote it off as jealousy and I shouldn’t have. I’m sorry.” Penelope reached out and took ahold of Josie’s hand. She tightened her grip when she realized Josie wasn’t pulling away. “The thing is, it never crossed my mind that anything would happen because I could never imagine anything happening with Heather. I don’t want to kiss her. I don’t want to kiss anyone other than you.”

Josie felt a small smile play at her lips. She couldn’t help it when Penelope said things like. The smile didn’t last long as she had a few more things to say. “You made me feel like what I thought didn’t matter. What I wanted didn’t matter. I was sixteen again, Pen. I just wanted you to listen to me and you refused to even listen to me.” Penelope went to spoke, but Josie shook her head, signaling for her to not interrupt. “I trust you, Penelope. Even after everything, I trust you. I know you would never cheat on me. And I got used to people hitting on you awhile ago. But, I still got jealous. And a part of me, not a big part and not a proud part, but a part of me always waited for someone to steal you away.”

“Josie.” The way that Penelope says her name makes her look away. It’s soft, but also full of pity. She hated it.

“Please don’t pity me. It just makes it worse.”

“JoJo. Hey. Please look at me.” Penelope lightly placed her hand on Josie’s cheek and softly forced her to meet her eyes. “I don’t pity you.”

Josie relaxed a bit at the comment. She leaned into the hand that was still holding her cheek. “Okay.”

“Okay.” Penelope finally closed the distance on the bench so that their knees were touching. “Where does that leaves us?”

Josie sighed. “We’ll be okay. I miss you.”

“I missed you, too. So much.” Penelope pulled Josie into a kiss. Josie resisted the temptation to melt into the other girl. She wanted to keep it short, because she really wasn’t in the mood to be making out on a bench in a park at 3 in the morning. She pulled away after a moment but stayed close enough to lean their foreheads together.

“Josie, I am so sorry. I know I’ve said it a million times, but I’ll say it a million more. I promise I will always listen to you. I promise if you ever bring up worries about someone again, I will take it seriously. I don’t care if it ends up being petty Jealousy. What you think and what you feel is important and valid. You are important and valid. And I love you more than anything.”

“I love you, too.” Josie pulled away and stood up, pulling Penelope with her. “Can we go home now? I miss sleeping in my own bed.”

“Whatever you want, love. I’ve missed having you in my bed.” Penelope’s signature smirk was planted on her face. Josie lightly smacked the raven-haired girl’s arm, but she couldn’t help the laugh that escaped her.

She had her girl back and she couldn’t be happier.  
\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Josie doesn’t pace, but she was pacing now. She was probably wearing a line in Lizzie’s living room, but she didn’t care. She was nervous, and she had so much extra energy she didn’t know what to do with.

“Josie, sit down. You’re making my neck hurt watching you.” Lizzie said with a laugh. A muttered apology accompanied Josie flopping next to her sister on the couch. The sisters are quiet for a moment. Josie was playing with her hands as Lizzie watched her with an amused looked. “I have an idea of what is going on, but just in case, you wanna tell me why you’re here?”

“I love her,” she pauses, wondering if the blonde next to her would interject. When she is met with silence, she continues. “And I can’t imagine not having her in my life. I want to spend it with her.”

“You want to propose.” Lizzie stated as if her earlier suspicion was proven right. Josie nodded. “Why does that seem to upset you? Shouldn’t you be jumping with joy?”

“I’m not upset. I’m nervous. What if it’s not what she wants? What if she turns me down? I don’t think I could take it.” Josie smiled when Lizzie grabbed her hand and squeezing it reassuringly. “You know, it hit me the other day that I wanted to marry her, and it has taken everything to not just ask her. We’ve never actually talked about getting married. Sure, there have been off hand comments and jokes, but not an actual talk.”

“You’re over thinking this. That girl is disgustingly in love with you. And Satan would be stupider than I thought if she turns you down.”

“Lizzie!” The blonde twin raised her hands in surrender. “Will you help me? I want it to be perfect. Please?”

Lizzie gave her twin a soft smile. “What do you have in mind?”

“I know I agreed to give the place a second shot, but man, it does not deserve a third. Why did you even want to go there?” Penelope asked, stepping out of the elevator.

Josie had only been half listening to her girlfriend’s rant about the restaurant they ate at earlier. She knew that it would go horribly, and that Penelope would not be able to let it go. She knew it was the perfect distraction. She knew her girlfriend wouldn’t notice how nervous she was or how she kept looking at her phone waiting for a very specific text. Or how quickly she wanted to leave as soon as she got that text. “I figured it would have gotten better. You know, maybe last time was just a one-off.”

“Well, it wasn’t. Seriously, Josie, we are never going back there. I don’t care how much you want to.” They reach their apartment door and Penelope goes to unlock it. Josie is a few steps behind, really praying that Lizzie and her friends did what they said they would. By the way Penelope stopped just inside the door, she knows that they did.

Josie lightly pushed her way into the apartment, tugging the other girl gently by the hand with her. Their living room was covered in soft fairy lights that coat the room in a multi-colored glow. All the furniture was pushed to the side, leaving plenty of room for the small picnic (really just cake and cookies) that their friends had set up. It was exactly how Josie pictured it.

“JoJo, what are you up to?” Penelope asks, staring around the room in slight awe. It was a sight that Josie would never tire of.

“Oh, you know, just trying to be romantic.” Josie nervously played with her girlfriend’s fingers. “Is it working?” The smile that she got in return said that it was. When she was pulled into a slow, tender kiss, she knew it worked exactly how she wanted. After a moment. She pulled away and gently lowered them into a sitting position. “Cookie?”

The two girls spent the next little bit eating through the desserts. Small talk, soft touches, and inside jokes passed the time. “So,” Penelope started, “what’s the actual reason for this impromptu picnic?” Penelope served up a soft smile when Josie didn’t answer and refused to meet her eyes. “What, you moving to Belgium or something?” When Josie still didn’t answer, Penelope’s smile faltered a bit. “You’re not, are you?”

“What? No. Of course not. I would’ve talked you about that.” Josie took a deep breath, seemingly coming to a decision. When she finally turned towards the raven-haired girl, she was ready to go full steam ahead. The outcome be damned. “Look, I had this whole speech prepared, but now I realize that it sucks, and I should leave the writing to you.”

Penelope went to interject, but Josie shook her head. “Please, just let me speak. If I stop now, I won’t get through this.” She took another deep breath. “I love you. I’ve been in love with you since that first blind date, really. These last two years have been everything to me. You helped me get through college, cause I would not have survived without those stupid movie nights we did. You helped stay sane no matter Lizzie’s crisis of the week. You encouraged me to apply to the one teaching gig I actually wanted. I never would have done that without you.

“And, it’s more than that. I told how I was in high school. Never really stepping out of my sister’s shadow. Never really trying to. Hope and MG helped me get over that a bit. They got me to see that I didn’t have to just be a twin. Without them, I never would have started flirting with the cute girl who made me coffee.” Josie stop for second, taking the chance to take in the other girl. Penelope had done what she said, listening quietly, but Josie could tell she was trying to hold back some tears.

“They might have helped see that what I wanted mattered, but you made me actually believe that. You made me feel seen in a way no one else has. You made me feel important and wanted. You made me realize that I could be so much more. And, yeah, we are not perfect-you’re not perfect- but this is everything I want. This everything I could ever want.” Josie reached into her jacket pocket and grabbed the small box that has been burning a hole there the entire night. “So, Penelope Park, will you marry me?”

Time seemed to stop for the pair. Josie staring hopefully at her girlfriend, awkwardly holding open the black box in her hand. Inside was an engagement ring. Not a big one (Josie just barely started that teaching gig), but one that Josie saw and instantly knew belonged on Penelope’s finger. Penelope, for her part, just continued to stare, tears gathering in her eyes. “Are you sure?”

“What?”

“Are you sure you want to marry me? I mean, you deserve so much more than me. I’m going to be working at that stupid coffee shop for forever because I decided I wanted to be a writer. You got a job right out of college. I’m still trying to find a use for my degree. I’ll probably end up teaching. And I don’t mean that as an insult, but it’s not where I want to be. That’s your dream. Plus, I’m over dramatic and bitchy to almost everyone and your sister doesn’t even like me. And I don’t know why, but she is probably right. I love you, but I’m not good enough. Hell, I'm adopted. My own parents didn’t want me.”

Josie knew Penelope was spiraling. Penelope didn’t look like it, but Josie knew that the girl had issues of her own. This wasn’t even the first time Penelope went on a long rant about how she didn’t deserve the brown-eyed girl. The difference was she was usually pretty drunk when she broke down. This time, she was stone-cold sober. Penelope refused to drink anything at diner, saying that place probably had the worst wine in the country. She was right when she said she was over dramatic.

“I want you. Yes, you are everything you just said, but you are so much more. You are extremely loyal, incredibly funny, and the only date that I brought home that my mother actually approved of. And Lizzie helped me set all this up, so she can’t hate you as much as you claim. She would never let me marry someone she truly disliked. And I don’t care if there is someone else that I deserve more. I don’t want them. I want you. So, please, stop overthinking this, stop trying to think of reasons to say no, and make me happier than I ever could be.”

Well, when Josie put it that way, Penelope didn’t know how to say anything but yes.

**Author's Note:**

> I started this awhile ago. Decided to finish it. I don't know if this is even any good. First fic, will probably write others if I every get around to it. Hoped you ended up enjoying it.


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